Unstamped, probably circa 1900, stick of faintly marked snakewood, nickel mounted frog and adjuster, plated wire lapping
and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 69.5 grams. Medium stiffness. Almost certainly made in Germany. The cheek has been repaired (probably split out by a clumsy rehairer), now with new bone tip face. I find this to be a good bow with a sensible balance, comfortable to play with and steady on the string. The hair ribbon is slightly narrow when compared with a modern viola bow.
Ref. T004 Price £100.00
Stamped W.SEIFERT, modern, octagonal brazilwood stick, nickel mounted frog and adjuster, imitation whalebone lapping
and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 67.2 grams. Medium stiffness.The varnish is a bit knocked about, but the stick and frog are in good condition. Reasonable balance and plays well for what it is, which is a student grade bow. Virtually identical bows are available new with various brands (Seifert, Paesold, Werner, etc.)so you can compare new and used prices if you wish.
Ref. T005 Price £100.00
Unstamped, probably circa 1900, stick of unidentified wood, possibly bois d'abeille, nickel mounted frog and adjuster, plated wire lapping
and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 68 grams. Medium to stiff. The bow looks to be French in origin, the ferrule is clearly a replacement but the remainder
of the frog and the adjuster seem original. I can see no repairs. It plays well enough, no obvious faults, but I found it just very slightly awkward compared with some other bows listed. May just be a personal thing!
Price £75.00
Unstamped, probably late 19th century, ironwood stick, nickel mounted frog (a replacement) and adjuster (also a replacement), plated wire lapping and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 69.8 grams. Medium stiffness. This is almost certainly a German bow. It originally had an open frog which I have replaced.
There is a nick on the stick which may be the edge of a repaired split where the grain runs out. The bow is sensibly balanced, feels comfortable enough on the viola and generally plays well, but it is nothing out of the ordinary.
Price £65.00
Stamped 'Foreign', an mid to late 20th century Czech. made bow of good quality brazilwood, octagonal stick with nickel mounted
ebony frog, nickel and ebony adjuster, plated wire lapping and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 70.5 grams. Medium to stiff.
No repairs as far as I can see. A well balanced student grade bow.
Price £50.00
Unstamped octagonal brazilwood stick, probably late 19th century, with a later half mounted ebony frog and nickel adjuster, plated wire lapping and leather thumbpiece. Weighs 70.9 grams. Medium stiffness. No repairs as far as I can see, but the bow has been straightened. A little more tip-heavy than a modern viola bow, but that can be an advantage. Quite a decent bow of its type, which plays at least as well as a similarly priced modern bow, but has a little more character.
Price £45.00
Otherwise only cheap bows (up to £40) available at present.